Application: Creating a Flowchart
Workflow analysis aims to determine workflow patterns that maximize the effective use of resources and minimize activities that do not add value. There are a variety of tools that can be used to analyze the workflow of processes and clarify potential avenues for eliminating waste. Flowcharts are a basic and commonly used workflow analysis method that can help highlight areas in need of streamlining.
In this Assignment, you select a common event that occurs regularly in your organization and create a flowchart representing the workflow. You analyze the process you have diagrammed and propose changes for improvement.
To prepare:
• Identify a common, simple event that frequently occurs in your organization that you would like to evaluate.
• Consider how you would design a flowchart to represent the current workflow.
• Consider what metrics you would use to determine the effectiveness of the current workflow and identify areas of waste.
To complete:
Write a 3- to 5-page paper which includes the following:
• Create a simple flowchart of the activity you selected. (Review the Sample Workflow of Answering a Telephone in an Office document found in this week’s Learning Resources for an example.)
• Next, in your paper*:
o Explain the process you have diagrammed.
o For each step or decision point in the process, identify the following:
- Who does this step? (It can be several people.)
- What technology is used?
- What policies and rules are involved in determining how, when, why, or where the step is executed?
- What information is needed for the execution of this step?
o Describe the metric that is currently used to measure the soundness of the workflow. Is it effective?
o Describe any areas where improvements could occur and propose changes that could bring about these improvements in the workflow.
o Summarize why it is important to be aware of the flow of an activity.